Durbin: "It's Time for Mitt Romney To Put Up Or Shut Up" On His Tax Returns

What Romney reported on his federal disclosure forms to run for President may not be the same as what's on his tax returns. Then there is the question of filing a false address in Massachusetts when he ran for governor.

Even if he never shows his taxes (which won't reveal his income from his overseas bank accounts anyway), he's toast. The voters want to know, and though it's not required he should have thought of it before he ran. He knew it would be asked of him, didn't he?

Jim Messina's propsal on behalf of Obama to Romney's campaign manager, Matt Rhodes, regarding withheld tax returns

Dear Matt:

I am writing to ask again that the Governor release multiple years of tax returns, but also to make an offer that should address his concerns about the additional disclosures. Governor Romney apparently fears that the more he offers, the more our campaign will demand that he provide. So I am prepared to provide assurances on just that point: if the Governor will release five years of returns, I commit in turn that we will not criticize him for not releasing more—neither in ads nor in other public communications or commentary for the rest of the campaign....

To provide these five years, the Governor would have to release only three more sets of returns in addition to the 2010 return he has released and the 2011 return he has pledged to provide. And, I repeat, the Governor and his campaign can expect in return that we will refrain from questioning whether he has released enough or pressing for more.

I look forward to your reply.

Jim Messina

Obama for America Campaign Manager

(use link for full text)

Let it rest why does the media keep pushing for information from Romney but never pushed for information about Obama and his background even when several issues came to light they played the devil's advocate in his favor.

Have you been sleeping these last few years? Ever hear of the birther movement? Ever hear of the Tea-Party?

Those are Conservative movements not MEDIA movements and last I recall the media does what it can to make the Tea Party seem as hostile as they can, while making the OWS (Liberals) the victim of an oppressive Government. Who has their head buried in the sand when looking at the facts?


While we are at it why was Obama's shady political dealings and "loophole" election process an almost off limit topic for most journalists during 2008? Obama doesn't believe in fair elections and 2008 poll results show that his voting "minions" were the least informed of the two parties

They are conservative movements that would not have been started without help from the RW Media.

The small portion of media that is Right leaning is what drove those movements? You really do listen to the crap that CBS, NBC, CNN and the others spout out at you don't you? So by your account the OWS was started by the Liberal medial

The majority of media is Right leaning. The lie that the mainstream media was first told by Rush Limbaugh the day after Reagan killed the truth in media regulation. It was a lie he spoke of often, which was necessary for the success of the right-wing propaganda mission as outlined by Roger Ailes in the Nixon White House files. "We must convince the masses that the mainstream press cannot be trusted" - it obviously worked on the weak minded such as yourself.

Wow are you living in the past have you watched a news report in the past few years because if you have to go back to Reagan and Nixon, you obviously haven't seen the way the news coddles Obama and the left in the mainstream media; such as CBS, NBC (and its affiliates) CNN, ABC, Comedy Central (from which Obama voters get their news), Rolling Stone, Newsweek, most print media and not to mention all the liberal websites that dominate the internet, starting with Yahoo. I note you didn't present that the FCC may have diminished the Fairness Doctrine but in 2011 it repealed it all together who was President at that time. I wonder. Who is too weak minded to grasp the truth.

On top of that two independent studies done after the 2008 campaign show that those who voted Democrat had less of a grasp on the facts than those who voted Republican and yet they understood the trivial components of the campaign; such as how much the RNC paid for Palin's wardrobe over who was in majority in Congress (which most Liberals still don't know that Democrats controlled congress during the last two years of Bush and still no changes in policy or anything, they even waited until Obama was elected until they sent a budget) Stay in your lala land and keep watching your "unbiased" news sources.

Only MSNBC and Current "coddle" Obama. You righties seem to think that unless a news source is bashing Obama relentlessly (like the RW news sources do), they are somehow automatically tools for the leftist establishment! That is simply not so.

And with all the bashing and lies thrust toward Obama, it would be a truly irresponsible news agency indeed that wouldn't see that the real truth is told. That is what has you so upset with the mainstream press.

I don't want them to "bash" anyone I want the news to be unbiased about everyone. I am moderate at best I don't care about, gay marriage, abortion issues or other "righty" causes. I want the media to be middle ground and not bash one side and praise the other. One only has to look back at the last 5 years of media coverage of Obama and his administration and see that one-sidedness of the coverage. It has nothing to do with bashing. Why does the need for hearing what you want to hear make the news unbiased for you? You actually believe that the news favors Republicans than you are way out of touch with reality in terms of news because watching any of the other news sources you can see that they were Obama fans during the 2008 election bid; even so far back as the primaries when they were going after Clinton for her stance against him.


What lies thrust towards Obama? Please enlighten me about that comment.

I agree. He owes it to the American people to show us those tax returns. If he has nothing to hide, then why hasn't he done it?

What is he so afraid of? Why so secretive Mittens?

I think he knows that if he shows them, he will lose the presidency.

He does not want to talk about 70 million reported in "son of boss" case. I think this is how mitt got his money.

You are probably right. This isn't going to go away. He needs to put up or shut up.

A rich man finding ways to stay rich and not pay any more taxes than he has to. For shame. I can't believe.it.
I've seen some of the commercials concerning this. Take his gross income and figure out how much taxes he actually paid. I'll bet it was considerably more than the average person paid. He'll have to do much worse than not paying any more taxes than the law requires for him to lose my vote.

What a bunch of BS and distractions. I don't give a darn what is on his tax returns. If he was breaking the law, the IRS would have been all over him. If you want to know what he made and what LEGAL deductions he took, you can go over his 2010 tax return and the 2011 one which will be released by October 15th. If you think that Romney (and all other people and businesses) shouldn't be able to take the deductions he LEGALLY did, then demand your Congressional representatives to change the tax laws, but to do it equally across the board without singling out any one group of people and/or businesses.

It's time for obama to put up or shut up! He has his entire life 'sealed' and his flunkies are harping on Romney for tax returns! Why is the left so intent on making fools of themselves? They are completely inept, irresponsible and hilariously defensive!!

Screw the democrats

What a beatiful lady you are.

Thanks, my hubby agrees

Well, he's sick too.. Enjoy..

Oh my. There are so many on opinion sites that are petty, small and mean spirited; no surprise to find more. You have a nice day now, ya hear.

You too Jackie. Glad we solved that one.. Sorry for your loss.

Oh my. There are so many on opinion sites that are petty, small and mean spirited; no surprise to find more. You have a nice day now, ya hear.

What a horrid thing to say!

LOL yes, the visual is horrid - just a phrase one can hear every day for most of the day on TV, here, on the streets, in schools, in songs etc.

My, my. It looks like 0bama is getting more and more desperate to get Romney's
tax returns to try to find something he can make scandalous to use in his
campaign of dirty tricks to discredit Romney. Romney has had one wife, which
eliminates one of 0bama's sources (sealed divorce decrees) for dirt to use against his opponents. He doesn't drink or have affairs or use the system to get favors for
his son. His wife pays for her own expensive clothing, and probably like
Romney's history of not taking paychecks for public service jobs, would continue to
do so. Like Bush and Reagan, the Romney's would probably use their own property
for vacations and to house the SS instead of charging vacations to the taxpayers.

It seems like a win-win situation for the country!

The Liberals don't want to hear that kind of sense in politics.

I know. Mitt and Ann Romney have class in spades, and the 0bamas have no class
and think this country owes them.... And for what? They both were able to get
Ivy League Law degrees and both have lost their license to practice do to felonious behaviour on both their parts. Had the MSM done their job and vetted them, they
never would have been elected because the both have a history of radical and dishonest
behaviour.

Link leads to "material unavailable."

You can google it under "Newsmax Romney federal disclosure forms" and it will come up.

I can't get the link I posted up and running, but you can look it up yourself under "Romney Newsmax federal disclosure forms" to find that what Romney reported in his federal disclosure forms to the Election Commission is not the same as what he reported to the SEC. I think he's hiding something, so I'm glad the President is pressing the issue. He is showing class as well in doing it. His campaign recently stated that they would drop the issue if he released five years, which is more than fair considering most Presidential candidates in recent times have released far more, including the President himself.

They are not entitled to five years............ He gives those five years, and if they
reveal nothing, they will ask for more.

You're the only one using the word "entitled". If he doesn't want to show his taxes fine by me. I wasn't planning on voting for him anyway.

I figured that out already. If you had researched 0bama as I have done, you
would know this is SOP for his campaigns.........

This is such BS and crap and you know that. Silly stuff. We are not entitled to see his taxes, but Romney is also not "entitled" to our vote either.

So don't vote for him........ Simple as that!

Are we entitled to see 0bama's sealed academic records, passport, since
he took a trip to Pakistan when Americans weren't allowed, and
other things he so quickly sealed when he decided to run for POTUS?
I bet Romney would gladly give up his income tax returns to have
a look at what 0bama is hiding. If Romney did anything wrong, the
IRS would have been up his @$$.